Living With The Elusive Closure of 9/11

"Saudi officials have long denied any involvement in the plot, emphasizing that they were at war with al-Qaida well before 2001."

"They have also leaned on earlier U.S. assessments, especially the one-page summary of a joint FBI-CIA report that was publicly released by the Bush administration in 2005. That summary said there was no evidence that “the Saudi Government or members of the Saudi royal family knowingly provided support” for the attacks."

"Pages of the report that were declassified in 2022 are more critical of the Saudi role, describing extensive Saudi funding for Islamic charities linked to al-Qaida and the reluctance of senior Saudi officials to cooperate with U.S. counterterrorism efforts."

"The plaintiffs’ account still leaves significant gaps in the story of how two known al-Qaida operatives, Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar, avoided CIA surveillance overseas, flew into Los Angeles under their own names and then — despite speaking no English and ostensibly knowing no one — settled in Southern California to start preparing for the attacks."

"Exactly whom in the Saudi government Bayoumi was working for remains unclear. [Omar al-Bayoumi, a middle-aged Saudi graduate student in San Diego who was the central figure in the hijackers’ support network.] FBI reports describe him as a “cooptee,” or part-time agent, of the Saudi intelligence service, but say he reported to the kingdom’s powerful former ambassador to Washington, Prince Bandar bin Sultan. (Lawyers for the Saudi government have continued to repeat Bayoumi’s earlier denials that he ever had “any assignment” for Saudi intelligence.)"

Pro Publica

 

Evidence gathered on Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the 9/11 mastermind, contained in documents render detailed views of the man's involvement in the massive attacks that took place in New York, Washington and the aborted attack that ended in a plane crash in a field in Pennsylvania. The destruction of the World Trade Towers in twin plane-missile suicide attacks and of the Pentagon exploded a shock wave of disbelief at the scale, audacity and brutality launched against those symbols of American pride and power. 

 

Newly released are details of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's interaction with the hijackers who committed the September 11, 2001 attacks.

 

Mohammed's singular statements over the years, phone records and other documents of coordination between himself and the hijackers were summarized as evidence contained in documents unsealed this week. Videos as part of al-Qaeda's schedule for the attacks and summaries of the attacks contained simulations of the four airliners' flight that fateful day. Other details were withheld from public view. 

 Photographs and death certificates of 2,976 people who died on the attacks of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the Pennsylvania field of the fourth airliner which smashed to the ground when passengers rallied to take command of the plane from the suicide hijackers, are to be presented as well. Military prosecutors' case against Mohammed who conceived of and executed much of al-Qaeda's attack are to be included.

 

The framework of the military prosecutors' case against Mohammed is part of a plea agreement the Defence Department is striving to roll back in court. Prosecutors' summaries and videos included in planning for the attacks saw Mohammed and two co-defendants agreeing to a plea deal with military prosecutors to plead guilty in the attack in trade of their life sentences. 

 

Suing for the plea bargain to be unsealed is a consortium of legacy media including the Associated Press, New York Times, National Public Radio, Washington Post, Fox News, NBC and Univision.

 

Additional revelations respecting greater details of the attack are likely yet to be revealed. Prosecutors, defence and a senior Pentagon official overseeing the cases at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba have agreed to a hearing to allow them to make public evidence compiled against the three defendants, linked to address complaints from victims' families that a plea bargain would restrain evidence from being fully revealed.

 

The deal had been negotiated for over two years  under government auspices by military prosecutors, defence attorneys and Guantanamo officials. Negotiations represented an effort to finally bring a resolution to the 9/11 case. Pretrial hearings since the attacks have remained static for the over two decades that have since passed.

 

Closer to the time in question, then-Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin took intercessionary steps in an attempt to void the plea agreement. His position was that waiving the potential of the death penalty in an attack of such magnitude and grave consequences represented a decision that should be the province of defence secretaries. 

 

In this photo reviewed by U.S. military officials, flags fly at half-staff at Camp Justice, Aug. 29, 2021, in Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

"Almost immediately after the 9/11 attacks, FBI agents identified Bayoumi as having helped the two young Saudis rent an apartment, set up a bank account and take care of other needs. Bayoumi, then 42, was arrested on Sept. 21, 2001, in Birmingham, England, where he had moved to continue graduate studies in business. Scotland Yard terrorism investigators questioned him for a week in London as two FBI agents monitored the sessions."

"After pressure from Saudi diplomats, Bayoumi was freed by the British authorities without being charged. U.S. officials did not try to have him extradited."

"In 2017, the FBI concluded that Bayoumi was, in fact, a Saudi spy — although it kept that finding secret until 2022, after President Joe Biden ordered agencies to declassify more documents from the 9/11 files."

Pro Publica

 

ECOWAS Threat of Niger Invasion

"A military intervention with no end in sight risks triggering a regional war, with catastrophic consequences for the vast Sahel that is already plagued by insecurity, displacement and poverty."

Mucahid Durmaz, senior analyst, global risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft 

"What we are witnessing today is both jihadi warring factions, the Islamic State group and [al-Qaeda affiliate Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin] marking their territory because of the security void caused by the coup."

"This definitely should be seen in the context of the ongoing war between the two groups."

Wassim Nasr, journalist, senior research fellow, Soufan Center think tank

Mohamed Toumba, one of the soldiers who ousted Nigerian President Mohamed Bazoum, addresses supporters of Niger's ruling junta in Niamey, Niger, Sunday, Aug. 6, 2023. (Sam Mednick/AP)

 

The standoff between Niger and ECOWAS, the West African regional bloc, and the Niger coup leaders grows more tense day by day. Niger was viewed as one of the final democratic countries in the Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert, a partner in the effort to counter growing jihadi violence linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group. Until the junta coup led by anti-Democratic forces in the Niger military who unseated the democratically elected Niger President Mohamed Bazoum.

ECOWAS had demanded that the junta, three weeks after the mutiny that ousted the president, release him and allow the country to return to its pre-coup state. The deadline passed, and ECOWAS issued fresh warnings that military intervention represents an option should their demands continue to be ignored. Leaving Nigeriens preparing for a possible invasion by regional countries.

A "standby force" has been activated for the purpose of restoring order in Niger. There are no signs the standoff is anywhere close to being defused, since the coup leaders remain defiant and ECOWAS determined to restore the presidency, although both sides have given signals of an openness to resolving the crisis through peaceful means. After rebuffing the bloc's efforts at talks, the junta claimed to be open to dialogue.

Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum smiles before a working lunch with French President Emmanuel Macron, Feb. 16, 2023 at the Elysee Palace in Paris.  (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

 

Instead of arriving at a bargaining table, the coup charged President Bazoum with "high treason", and took to recalling its ambassador from Ivory Coast. Should the bloc determine it will proceed with an invasion, it would likely be comprised of several thousand troops. The consequences, according to conflict experts, would have devastating results. Former colonial occupier of Niger, France and the U.S. have some 2,500 military personnel training the Niger military.

France and the United States, since the coup have suspended military operations, resulting in an increase in jihadi attacks. In an extremist ambush in the Tillaberi region, 17 soldiers and nearly two dozen more were wounded on Tuesday afternoon when a military detachment travelled between villages, representing the first major attack against the Niger army in six months; a worrying sign of potential escalation.

According to analysts, the longer the coup carries on, the less likely it is that an intervention will materialize, while the junta cements its grip on power. In the final analysis, forcing the international community to accept the status quo, much as it has done in Afghanistan. The 25 million Nigeriens live in one of the poorest countries in the world where residents hoped the new regime would forge a new path for the nation.

In the event, however, residents in the capital Niamey are being called upon to volunteer in assisting the army in the face of the threat by the West African regional bloc. An initiative spearheaded by locals in Niamey plans to recruit tens of thousands of volunteers from across the country to register for the Volunteers for the Defense of Niger.

Such volunteers would be expected to help with medical care and provide technical and engineering logistics, as well as fight, should the junta require that of them. "It's an eventuality. We need to be ready whenever it happens", Amsarou Bako, one of the volunteer group founders explained to Western media. Any Niger citizen over 18 years of age is asked to register, the list to be given to the junta to call upon volunteers if needed.

"We do not give a damn about ECOWAS. ECOWAS has been tailor-made for the presidents in power. And we do not need it." 

"Whether ECOWAS intervenes or not, Niger is ready for all options. We are ready. Whatever ECOWAS decides, we are ready."

Omar Amadou, Niamey resident

Supporters of Niger’s ruling junta gather at the start of a protest called to fight for the country’s freedom and push back against foreign interference in Niamey, Niger, Aug. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

Unintended Consequences

"At 11:42 a.m. local time on May 3rd, U.S. Central Command forces conducted a unilateral strike in Northwest Syria targeting a senior Al Qaeda leader."

CENTCOM

 

'Senior leader' of Al-Qaeda-linked group killed in US strike   Middle East Monitor

 

"Centcom takes all such allegations seriously and is investigating to determine whether or not the action may have unintentionally resulted in harm to civilians."

Michael Lawhorn, spokesman, Central Command

Military officials in the United States are now investigating a recent strike in Syria that senior officials initially claimed killed a high-ranking al-Qaeda fighter. The man who was killed by the Central Command strike was a 56-yar-old farmer, struck by a killer drone on May 3. A man whom family and other villagers identify as a father of ten who had been tending his sheep when an American missile hit and killed him. Lotfi Hasa Misso, a former bricklayer, lived in Qorqanya, Syria, described as hard-working whose "whole life was spent poor".

Hours after the strike the operation, overseen by US. Central Command, claimed a Predator drone strike targeted a "senior al-Qaeda leader". The brother of the dead man immediately contacted the famed White Helmets who arrived on scene to find a dead man and animals that had also been struck. Doubts were raised and communicated to the Pentagon. "We are no longer confident we killed a senior AQ official", said one official. Another clarified on the condition of anonymity that "though we believe the strike did not kill the original target, we believe the person to be al-Qaeda."

 

Mohammed Hassan Masto sits next to the grave of his brother Lutfi, who was killed on Wednesday, May 3, in a U.S. military strike, in the village of Qorqanya, a rural area in northern Idlib province, Syria, Sunday, May 7, 2023

 

Following the attack American military authorities refused to identify who their target was, much less how the targeting error occurred or even whether a legitimate terrorist leader had escaped. Some of the U.S. military authorities continue to insist that a 'senior leader' of an Al-Qaeda-linked group was killed in the and that the dead farmer, despite the family's and villagers' denials was indeed a member of al-Qaeda.

 

When such unintended consequences take place, as they have in the past, the Pentagon tends to expand investigations in light of sufficient credible evidence of harm to civilians emerging. In this case questions have been raised whether the information that had been used in the authorization of the attack can even be justified. 

 

The Biden administration last year insisted it would take steps to reduce such risks to civilians, promising greater transparency when unintended deaths occur. The U.S. military had covered up past instances of errant airstrikes inadvertently killing innocent people. Media outlet investigations revealed flawed intelligence and "confirmation bias" led to disaster. A 2021 strike during the U.S. evacuation of Afghans under emerging Taliban rule had officially been described as targeting a suicide bomber, but had killed ten Afghan civilians, seven children among them. 

The Washington Post broke the story after having given four terrorism experts details about Lotfi Hassan Misto, and where he lived, asking them to survey online discussions among jihadists following the strike for comments on the Qorqanya attack. The result was no references indicating Misto to be affiliated with a terrorist group; each of the consultants remarking it would be unusual for a senior leader in al-Qaeda to operate near the area, controlled by a rival group.

The Post shared coordinates of where the drone strike occurred -- near Misto's home and chicken farm. One U.S. defence official said the location is close to a "known area of interest" to al-Qaeda contradicting Misto's neighbours who say that no terrorists live or operate near Misto's home. Obtaining images of Misto's face before and after death, the Post provided them to Central Command where officials have not responded whether they believe he is the man killed in the strike.

Father-of-ten Lotfi Hassan Misto, 56, who has been identified by his family as the man killed in the strike on May 3. They say was a former bricklayer who lived in the quiet northern town of Qorqanya, according to the Washington Post

 

 

The Degrading Downfall of Afghan Hopes

"He said the Taliban are hiding around these houses, they will open fire, you need to leave."

"I was thinking that the regime has changed. Everywhere I saw the white Taliban flag and armed fighters."

"I asked my husband has the government collapsed and we weren't told?"

Habiba, from Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, Kabul refugee

"The Taliban have recognized that all they need to do is keep the pressure on, wait us out, and launch simultaneous offensives around the country."

"They have broadly achieved their objective without the U.S. getting meaningful concessions in return. 

[The situation is] increasingly dire with each passing week."

"I fear we will look back and regret the decision to withdraw.The onset of what is going to be quite a brutal civil war, considerable ethnic and sectarian displacement, assassination of government officials, millions of refugees flooding into other countries, particularly Pakistan."

"We will see the return of al-Qaida and the Islamic State, though I don't see an immediate, domestic security threat for the U.S. in that regard."

David Petraeus, former U.S. Afghanistan commander, former head, CIA

"There is us and only us to fight the Taliban. That acknowledgement and realization was important."

"It is far from reality that the Taliban will be in a position to force the government to surrender. They may win the battles, but it's impossible to win the war."

Afghanistan government official

Before and after maps of Afghanistan; left Taliban controlled areas in April, right Taliban controlled areas in July ... Council on Foreign Relations

 

Close to 300,000 people have now fled their homes as a result of the U.S. retreat from Afghanistan that gave the Islamist fanatic Taliban the opportunity they have long waited for. Not that they were ever quiescent; they kept the memory of their presence alive and well, from forcing farmers in areas they continued to control in Afghanistan to grow salable poppy instead of edible crops, to threatening the rural population and destroying Western-built schools while launching suicide attacks.

The presence of U.S. and NATO-member troops kept the Taliban from fulfilling their ultimate goal, but now that all are leaving after committing to a two-decade stay resulting in a stalemate, their time has come. Ongoing, relentless attacks are being launched across the country with greater vigour and determination. For that matter, with the certainty of a U.S. withdrawal even while negotiations were taking place in Doha between U.S. special representative to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban delegation leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar Taliban attacks on Afghan government installations were rife.

Signals, if any were needed of the pretense of negotiations, illustrated by the Taliban refusal to negotiate directly with the government of President Ashraf Ghani until the U.S. committed to its promised withdrawal, a promise that the Taliban decorated with its pledge to honour the U.S. demand that Afghanistan never again become a springboard for Islamist terrorists to launch attacks against the U.S. Now the Taliban gloat and praise themselves for having vanquished the U.S. to enable them to step up their relentless attacks.

An Afghan policeman keeps watch at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Kabul.   Reuters

 

Only the overwhelmingly anxious intention of the U.S. to decamp finally and forever from Afghanistan, the war that would not end, deadened them to the absurdity of 'negotiating for peace' with the fundamentalist terrorists that call them selves the Taliban scholars. The U.S. was so anxious to escape the Kandahar air base without attacks on its personnel in the process, that it failed to alert the Afghan military until the base was emptied of its American personnel.

In the process, leaving armoured vehicles and all manner of other military equipment as a gift to the Afghan military, which not having been alerted, was unable to mount a guard over the base which was then ransacked upon the withdrawal, and tools of war ostensibly meant to benefit the government of Afghanistan fell into the possession of its enemies. An inexcusably botched operation from start to finish, despite American avowals of continued financial assistance to the Ghani government.

A country embattled by the global pandemic, by a crop and food and medicine shortage, which has been placed on siege notice. The residents of Kabul have seen foreign embassies withdraw personnel while others take stock of supplies and try to secure sources of both food and gas, even as streams of Afghan refugees are flooding the city in search of sanctuary from the ravages of conflict pitting the military against the Taliban terrorists.  Severe drought stalks the land adding to food shortages.

The Islamist terrorists take no prisoners; execution is far more efficient and any military who fall into their hands know their abrupt fate. A resistance from the country's warlords against the Taliban ascendancy once again is in the works, a replay of a two-decade-old drama re-enacted. The warlords' reputation is one of greed of possessions, motivated by power and influence and riches, as opposed to the Talibans' single-focus power-grab with influence and financial assets following.

The country's border crossings are in their crosshairs, cutting off the government's source of income through customs revenues. Taliban control is consolidating in spheres previously held by NATO allies in Kandahar and Helmand provinces. The Taliban bombed the home of the acting defence minister on Tuesday at a guarded upscale Kabul neighbourhood, missing the minister but killing and wounding many others. More recently the director of the government's media centre in Kabul was ambushed and killed.

The pretense of peace negotiations that the U.S. and the West uses as a screen to mask their desertion of Afghanistan is laughable. The Taliban is growing its territory and power base in leaps and bounds of military success. They have no reason whatever to negotiate for a shared peace agreement leading to a co-governing solution to the conflict roiling the country. It has always been nothing but a transparent sham, aided and abetted by the Pakistan Interagency Intelligence unit intent on fully destabilizing its neighbour.

The Taliban which swore it was committed to the peace process, assuring the Americans by telling them what they knew was wanted to salve their conscience and enable them to hold up a banner to the world of a promise to power-share, to honour the human rights of Afghans, to ensure the country would never again be used as a base from which to plot and attack the West, is set to reverse that pledge at the earliest opportunity.

The West has been warned time again to remove its blinders and deliberately fails to. Wherever the Taliban has taken control it has restored its medieval theocracy, women have been banned from school and work and public representation. Islamic State and al Qaeda, both firmly ensconced in the country now have an assured place of honour until such time that they too begin to turn against the Taliban with intention of replacing them as marginally more human rights-abusive tyrants and threats against Western interests.

Taliban fighters attend a gathering to celebrate the U.S.-Taliban deal in March 2020. Wali Sabawoon/NurPhoto/Getty Images